Summer Recipe #5: Cucumber Gazpacho
Hi there!
How is your summer going? This month has been unbearably hot in Spain, and being pregnant doesn’t help manage the heat! I just hope the temperatures can go down a bit to give us a break, so we can do a few more things outdoors.
Lately, I’ve just been going to the garden to harvest veggies. It’s just way too hot to try to do some work down there, so I hope my veggie plants will stay strong until I can give them some love again 😅.
I thought the heat killed my cucumber and zucchini plants, but yesterday I was able to harvest quite a few again, so I made this refreshing gazpacho, which takes 5 minutes to prepare, and I love it as a light lunch!
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Growing up in Spain, Gazpacho was one of those dishes that I loved at the beginning of the summer and somehow ended up hating by the end. Don't get me wrong, Gazpacho is a delicious and refreshing Spanish soup, but when you get it almost daily as a teenager, you don't appreciate it as much. Now, I can't tell you how much I miss my grandma's Gazpacho served with those incredible olives she used to make every summer.
When my grandma ran out of tomatoes, she still made Gazpacho (lucky for me), which we used to call "the green gazpacho," with cucumbers. And this is the one I'm sharing today: my granny's Cucumber Gazpacho, just how she made it. I even added cucumber flowers, as this was my special touch. My grandad would send me to the garden to pick some of the cucumber flowers to garnish the soup.
Unlike traditional Gazpacho, which is loaded with fresh veggies, Cucumber Gazpacho uses only fresh cucumbers and a few other ingredients to make it creamy and tasty. This is a summer recipe, so the best way to make it is using seasonal cucumbers, which are juicy; otherwise, your gazpacho will look more like a mash.
Ingredients
3-4 cucumbers (we use homegrown cucumbers)
9 oz (250g) plant-based yogurt. Unsweetened. We use Greek-style yogurt from the brand “Alpro”, but you can find other options for plant-based yogurts in large supermarkets.
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4-5 leaves fresh mint
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar (or apple cider vinegar, or lemon juice)
A pinch of salt
Cooking Method
Wash and roughly peel the cucumbers. Then, chop them into smaller pieces so they fit in the blender.
Add all the chopped cucumber with the rest of the ingredients to a food processor or a big blender jug. For this recipe, we use our Ninja Food Processor.
Now blend for a few minutes or until you get the right consistency. Cucumber gazpacho should be smooth and creamy. If your cucumbers are not fresh (maybe they've been in the fridge for a couple of days or harvested too late), you may need to add a little fresh water.
You can serve the gazpacho immediately or leave it to cool in the fridge. I personally like it better when it's been sitting in the fridge for at least two hours. Garnish with some seeds, edible flowers, and some more cucumbers finely chopped. Don't forget to add a good drizzle of olive oil!
Gazpacho is traditionally served as an appetizer or drink during the summer months in Spain. You can find gazpacho in some events served in little glasses, but also in restaurants served as a first course.
At home, we serve gazpacho as a first course or light meal with some Kalamata or Marinated olives, and if we have some jars, we top the soup with our homemade garlic confit or preserved lemons.
You can serve this cucumber soup with some crusty bread to make the meal more filling. I personally like serving bread with classic gazpacho, but I prefer to serve cucumber gazpacho with olives.
If you need some ideas for a main course to go with this cucumber gazpacho, check out this Mediterranean Salad, or this lovely Falafel Sandwich.
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Love,
Laura.